It’s not everyday that you go to a restaurant and order a hot dog, let alone two different restaurants. That’s what happened on Thursday for our latest ‘Eating Siouxland’ trip, though. We grabbed lunch at two of Sioux City’s long-standing hot dog restaurants, Milwaukee Weiner House (Pearl St.) and Coney Island Weiner House No. 1 (Nebraska St.). It quickly became a competition between the two, comparing and contrasting the differences between the two. In the end, considering everything, Milwaukee’s walks away with my vote for the Sioux City hot dog title.
Exterior of Coney Island Wiener House
Exterior Signage for the Milwaukee Wiener House
I have eaten at Milwaukee’s five or so times since I began attending school at Morningiside three years ago. I had not eaten at, nor even heard of Coney Island before this class. In fact, there is another hot dog place, George’s #1 Hot Dogs, which I had not heard of until this class, either. A few friends suggested Milwaukee’s to me and I was never informed that there was other places available. I think a lot of this is that these types of restaurants are the places that get a lot of repeat customers from people who went there as kids, and they only go back to the same places and order the same things. I think it’s safe to say that restaurants that specialize in one particular type of food like these hot dog places are considered good if they have consistency over the years.
That said, I think the Milwaukee Wiener House benefits from a few things that Coney Island is missing out on. One of the first beneficial things is their location. Milwaukee’s is a self-standing building that is noticeable, on a busy street, with easily accessible and available parking. With a giant logo on the side of the building, Milwaukee’s is noticeable from a distance. Coney Island on the other hand, is a little further into downtown Sioux City, squeezed in between a block of buildings, without any really noticeable signage. Parking isn’t as easy as at Milwaukee’s, so I’m assuming most people that eat at Coney Island enter as foot traffic. Milwaukee’s is also benefiting from much more publicity online through reviews on Urbanspoon and Yelp. I think this leads to more notoriety to attract those who are not from Sioux City, like myself.
Interior of Coney Island
Inside the Milwaukee Wiener House
I think Milwaukee’s is also benefiting from their overall branding and appearance at their restaurant more than Coney Island. Both restaurants have an authentic vintage feel, but I felt that Milwaukee’s has stood the test of time better. Walking into the place, you feel like you just stepped back into 1960. It’s the type of place you expect to see Don Draper from Mad Men to grab a bite to eat at. That vintage look is really popular today, in part because of shows like Mad Men, and seems to translate better with most rather than other time periods. Although Coney Island, has that same feel, and in part, that same appearance, it just feels more old than classic. The entire experience at Milwaukee’s gives that vintage feel: the plastic booths, the logos and illustrations, the paper hats, and even the pop in the glass bottles. Coney Island doesn’t have that same feel throughout the entire experience. Although, the storefront looks vintage and could be used as a backdrop in a Wes Anderson film, the inside doesn’t quite have that same feel. Perhaps it’s just that pop culture has made the era’s restaurants look more like Milwaukee’s than Coney Island, but I still feel that Milwaukee’s has stood the test of time in this area. On a related side note, recent news has said that Milwaukee’s will be moving to a new location because of the Hard Rock Casino being built in downtown Sioux City. I wonder if they will attempt to keep that classic vintage look they have now, or try to modernize. My gut tells me they will keep the same look, but I truly hope they don’t try to mix two different looks and lose what they have already.
Two hot dogs with everything at Milwaukee
Upon arrival at Milwaukee’s, I ordered 2 “hot dogs with everything,” meaning the usual Coney Island style: chili, mustard, and onions. The service has always been quick, with one of the owners swiftly putting together the meal from years of experience. Although the lines can get long here, the service is so quick that it isn’t even that noticeable. Plus, the restaurant is large enough that it can accommodate large noon crowds. The hot dogs were just as I expected, the warm, extra soft buns holding a perfect mix of mustard, chopped onions, and finely ground chili meat on a hot dog. As I mentioned before, consistency is key, and the hot dog tastes exactly as it did on my first trip there 3 years ago.
Two hot dogs with everything at Coney Island
After this, we walked the few blocks to Coney Island, where I ordered the same thing, 2 hot dogs with chili meat, mustard, and onions. One thing to note was that the service here was not quite as speedy as at Milwaukee’s. Neither place expected our group of 20, but Milwaukee’s is prepared for a rush like that on a daily basis. It doesn’t seem that Coney Island gets a rush of people like that, nor would they have room for something like that as their restaurant was not as large as Milwaukee’s. Coney Island was very much so a mom and pop restaurant with the couple working the counter. Service was very friendly and accommodating so no complaints there. The hot dogs were very good here, but noticeably different from Milwaukee’s. Both the onions and the chili meat had a different flavor than their competitor’s. The chili meat at Coney Island was a little bit thicker in consistency, while the onions at Milwaukee’s had a more noticeable flavor. One other noticeable difference between the two was that Coney Island had things like French fries and onion rings for their sides, while Milwaukee’s only has potato chips.
Really, in the end, I think my vote in favor of the Milwaukee Weiner House hot dogs comes a mix of experience with their consistency and their branding and environment. Both are equally good restaurants and I would recommend all who wish to try one of these places for the first time, to try them both.
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